Show me your solutions for a muddy mucky chicken yard!

[Michael Propst]

My run use to be just sand and dirt and always got so muddy after spring and fall rains. I found a new product at my local landscape store call PrimeraOne Field Conditioner. I love this product a bit more expensive than sand but the results and maintenance are worth it. I tried it out in one part of my run for a couple months and then this spring I shoveled out my entire run and put down a 3-4" layer of PrimeraOne. Here are the results.

 

[aart]

My run use to be just sand and dirt and always got so muddy after spring and fall rains.

Is that run covered?

 

[Michael Propst]

Is that run covered?

Yes it is fully covered.

 

[aart]

Yes it is fully covered.
View attachment 1766374

Nice!
Covered makes a huge difference when using sand.

 

[Michael Propst]

Nice!
Covered makes a huge difference when using sand.

Its not sand it is a new product I found at a local landscape supply store called PrimeraOne Field Conditioner.
Calcined Clay Soil Modifier
PrimeraOne Soil Conditioners provide solutions to maintenance problems on baseball infields and athletic turf fields. PrimeraOne Calcined clay products are manufactured specifically to condition fields to improve drainage, reduce compaction and manage moisture.

PrimeraOne Field Conditioner has the unique ability to absorb its own weight in water and slowly release this moisture over and over again. PrimeraOne conditioned fields result in less rainouts, less missed practices, and less field damage. PrimeraOne Field Conditioner is manufactured to work season after season.

Infields
Maintaining a quality infield is the most important responsibility of a groundskeeper. Incorporating PrimeraOne Field Conditioner into the skinned infield will prevent rainouts in the spring and hard compacted infields in the dry summer.

Turf Applications
PrimeraOne Field Conditioner incorporated into you turf will add valuable pore space in the soil, preventing compaction that will destroy turf. PrimeraOne Field Conditioner will increase drainage and manage moisture, allowing turf to thrive.

Packaging - 50 lb bags (40 bags/pallet)
Ingredient - 100% Calcined Fullers Earth (also known as Calcined Clay)
Bulk Density - 35. lbs. / cubic ft. 19 bags (50 lb) = 1 cubic yard
Application Instructions - Complete use directions are listed on the back of the bag

https://primera.coop/field-conditioner/

 

[aart]

Its not sand it is a new product

Yes, I know....but still, a covered run is much different than an uncovered run.

 

[feathermaid]

How deep are your chips @FlappyFeathers?
Do you have another place they can dust bathe?
What happens when they dig down to the mesh?

All good questions. I have not seen my birds dig down to the mesh at all lately, they did a bit when the chips were new and loose, though nothing ever really happened, except they stopped digging and moved on. Not sure what else would happen. The solid pvc material (not coated wire) is smooth and sturdy, it won't hurt the chickens' feet or get ripped apart, I've tried.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-36-in-x-5-9-10-in-Black-PVC-Poultry-Netting-EPFB3625/205968157

You inspired me to go outside and dig down to the bottom, it's about 4-5" in most areas, maybe 1-2" in others. It's a bit more decomposed than I thought it would be by now, so I turned it which brought up lots of interesting goodies and chickens came to investigate. I wanted to see if they continued to scratch back down to the mesh by themselves, but they didn't. After seeing how compacted the bottom layer was, it seems they only scratch just enough to mix up the top layer or make shallow potholes.


This barrier is more to keep the chips from sinking and becoming part of the mud... and I realize this step may not be necessary for everyone. But with such excessive rains here, this is best "concept" solution to keep any surface materials from disappearing or sinking, whether it be mulch, gravel, river rocks or patio pavers. Those landscaping materials can be contained with plain landscape fabric instead... I have a gravel "patio" that looks exactly the same after 5 years, it's all still there. Landscape fabric however, does NOT do well in a chicken yard, their scratching turns it into fluffy fluff balls.


Plenty of dust bath areas. The covered runs have bare dirt floors with shavings on top, but their favorite spot is blocked off right now for integration (my chicks are using that run plus a section of the coop, both with dividers only they can fit through). And the whole area under the coop is sand. Chickens killed the plants in one of my planters in my backyard, so I gave them that bowl of dirt too, but I have to keep filling it periodically. My chicks are spending most of the day with the rest of the flock lately so it might be time to take down the safety dividers soon.

When I opened the door to the chick side, big girls had to check it out, but chicks were already in the other run... in the planter.

Here's an old picture of my whole coop since my setup sounds confusing.

(sorry I couldn't get around to posting all this until so late tonight)

 

[aart]

You inspired me to go outside and dig down to the bottom, it's about 4-5" in most areas, maybe 1-2" in others. It's a bit more decomposed than I thought it would be by now, so I turned it which brought up lots of interesting goodies and chickens came to investigate. I wanted to see if they continued to scratch back down to the mesh by themselves, but they didn't. After seeing how compacted the bottom layer was, it seems they only scratch just enough to mix up the top layer or make shallow potholes.

Great pics!
What do you turn it with to avoid damaging the mesh?
Will you eventually remove the fines(or all of it)....or just keep adding larger chips?

 

[feathermaid]

Great pics!
What do you turn it with to avoid damaging the mesh?
Will you eventually remove the fines(or all of it)....or just keep adding larger chips?

I have a manure shovel from when I had horses, and also a "snow shovel" my brother gave me when he moved back from New Hampshire. The flat edge just scoops it right up. As long as I only scoop in the direction it was laid, I won't accidentally pull up the mesh. It's fastened to the ground with square garden pins and the shovel slides over the top of those too, though it's not too difficult to fix if something does get out of whack. As long as nobody gets all crazy stabbing the ground, it's good.

I planned to remove it all (or most) and use it as mulch around my landscaping. If I leave it there and pile more on top, it'll just turn into soil, aka mud, which I'm trying to avoid. And because of the location next to my house, I can't keep making it deeper indefinitely. I'm not really sure yet when I'll move it, but I figure we shoveled it all in there, we can shovel it all out. It's just a days work with my DH's help.

As far as replacing it, still debating. These chips came from a large maple tree we had removed before I built my new coop. I will probably ask for a load from the same tree service we used, but may not know the type of trees used. Otherwise, I can buy from my local landscape supply companies, they sell mostly bark chips, of which I know reasons not to use. But they do have clean barkless cedar chips, which I'm also considering.
I've started a new thread on possible concerns:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/using-cedar-wood-chips-in-the-run.1308504/

 

[paneubert]

Its not sand it is a new product I found at a local landscape supply store called PrimeraOne Field Conditioner.
Calcined Clay Soil Modifier
PrimeraOne Soil Conditioners provide solutions to maintenance problems on baseball infields and athletic turf fields. PrimeraOne Calcined clay products are manufactured specifically to condition fields to improve drainage, reduce compaction and manage moisture.

PrimeraOne Field Conditioner has the unique ability to absorb its own weight in water and slowly release this moisture over and over again. PrimeraOne conditioned fields result in less rainouts, less missed practices, and less field damage. PrimeraOne Field Conditioner is manufactured to work season after season.

Infields
Maintaining a quality infield is the most important responsibility of a groundskeeper. Incorporating PrimeraOne Field Conditioner into the skinned infield will prevent rainouts in the spring and hard compacted infields in the dry summer.

Turf Applications
PrimeraOne Field Conditioner incorporated into you turf will add valuable pore space in the soil, preventing compaction that will destroy turf. PrimeraOne Field Conditioner will increase drainage and manage moisture, allowing turf to thrive.

Packaging - 50 lb bags (40 bags/pallet)
Ingredient - 100% Calcined Fullers Earth (also known as Calcined Clay)
Bulk Density - 35. lbs. / cubic ft. 19 bags (50 lb) = 1 cubic yard
Application Instructions - Complete use directions are listed on the back of the bag

https://primera.coop/field-conditioner/

This gives me flashbacks to my freshwater planted fish tank days. That stuff is used as an inert substrate for many really nice planted tanks. Always funny to see how people use products "off label".